However, they say they are used to the challenges of farming in Northern Ontario and are more annoyed than discouraged.
I’m really trying to be patient and stay calm, because I can’t control this situation.
says Marcelle Paulin, co-owner of Sleepy G Farm in Pass Lake, east of Thunder Bay.
But definitely things are slow.
Marcelle Paulin of Sleepy G Farm, with her son Lowell, said she was trying to stay calm despite a late spring.
Photo: Marcelle Paulin
Owners of Stanley Hill Bison Farm are growing grain to produce hay to feed their animals, but they haven’t been able to seed it yet due to snow and wet weather, says farm co-owner Ashley Janssens.
Last year, the seedlings were already in the ground at this time.
” We are already struggling to get food due to the drought [l’année dernière]. And now I feel like we’re falling behind again. »
The wet and snowy conditions also prevented some of their vehicles from driving into the fields to herd animals for the slaughterhouse, adds Ms Janssens.
Kevin Belluz, co-owner of Belluz Farms, says the abundance of rainfall is a blessing in disguise
as they will provide water to land and ponds that were depleted during last year’s dry conditions.
Kevin Belluz of Belluz Farms says the snow and rain will have a beneficial effect after last year’s drought.
Photo: CBC/Gord Ellis
Mr Belluz points out that there are a limited number of crops that can be planted early in the year in the region and that he was not going to worry about the growing season unless there are still snow in the ground after the first week of May.
But he says the accumulation of snow has hampered preparations for the season, such as the maintenance of farm equipment, which was still covered in snow at the end of last week.
Marcelle Paulin says she couldn’t plant in her unheated paddocks because they were flooded and surrounded by snow.
However, his biggest concern is with field crops that take longer to ripen, such as pumpkins and squash.
What we do is sow in the greenhouse
she says, and heating the greenhouses was not a pleasure. With the wind and snow, it’s hard to keep the place at a decent temperature.
It’s Thunder Bay
DeBruin Greenhouses have seen their gas bills drop from about $3,000 a month last year to about $4,500 a month this year due to colder temperatures, says owner Arjen DeBruin.
The price of our product is such that we can withstand cold winter like this
he said.
Do we like paying those big bills to the gas companies? Nope
he added. But you know what? It’s Thunder Bay.
Arjen Debruin, left, of Debruin’s Greenhouses, said his farm could survive the higher costs of a cold winter.
Photo: Facebook/Debruin Greehouses
Pitch Creek Farm switched to wood heating this year, which brought down costs, but its greenhouses suffered in another way in the winter when two unheated structures collapsed in the snow.
We’re trying to take some of the things that were supposed to be planted in these this week and plant them around the tomato plants we have in our large heated tunnels
says owner-operator Brandon Harris.
Last year, the farm began planting crops such as kale outdoors in late April. At the moment, the fields are still snow-covered.
So [nous] have to go back to the drawing board and adjust our grow plan a bit and try to think of some creative solutions
says Harris.
Arjen DeBruin reminds us that farming is not easy and you have to deal with setbacks.
It’s part of farming here in the North
he said.
He adds that in two weeks he will have forgotten the problems he is currently facing.
With information from CBC
Reference-ici.radio-canada.ca